A Hair's Breadth from Madness
by Light In The Void
Summary: They say that kids give you grey hairs. They also say some kids never grow up. Unfortunately for Gilbert, the Demon King proved them right on both accounts.


Hello hello~ How is everyone~? :D

I've been thinking that Gilbert really deserves some more love in the Hana to Akuma fandom xD;; Hence this really, really random one-shot.

That said, I hope you enjoy it anyway xD;; And thanks go to my beta, Nanaga, who always helps me fix up my mistakes~

**Warnings:** Set around the time of the final chapter of the Moritz arc. Most likely slight OOC-ness for both Lucifer-sama and Gilbert ^^;

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Hana to Akuma.

* * *

_**A Hair's Breadth from Madness**_

=#=#=#=

It began as a day like any other.

Still, that didn't make it normal by any definition. Nor, much to Gilbert's ever increasing weariness, did it ever make it peaceful. He should have seen it coming the second he noticed the stubborn glint in Lucifer-sama's grey eyes.

"I'm not going."

Gilbert sighed, used to the spontaneous decision-making that characterized the Demon King. _Not to mention his love of shirking his work._ "Lucifer-sama, this is a highly important meeting. Several of the lords in the south have travelled a long way specifically for it. They will be expecting you."

"Can't you send Moritz in my place or something? It's a sign of royal favour, he'd be happy to sit there and listen." The Demon King flopped across the plush lounge covers, leaning backwards over the arm rest until he looked at his butler-guard upside down.

"That will not do, Lucifer-sama. Moritz-dono may be a Duke, but he is not your official successor, nor does he have the authority required to deal with your guests' requests." Gilbert's mouth twisted down slightly with disapproval. "Unless you intend to finally end your little game and actually designate a successor?"

Lucifer's eyes widened innocently, although the sparkle of mischief that shone in them gleefully was anything but innocent. "Game, Gilbert? It's nothing of the sort. Shouldn't I be absolutely sure that my successor has all the necessary skills to become king in my place?" A rich chuckle escaped the demon. "Anyway, I'd lose more chances to play with my beloved Vivi if I did that."

That undying gleam in the king's eye undoubtedly spelt trouble for his younger Earth-bound relative. Gilbert probably would have felt sorry for Duke Vivi … if his own charge had not been proving so immovably stubborn.

"Seeing as Moritz-dono is already occupied in the human world on your instructions – 'playing with your beloved Vivi', as you put it, he is unavailable to deal with _your_ meeting. This, Lucifer-sama, leaves only _you_ to attend." A feeling of triumph surged up in the pale-haired demon at the thought that he had finally talked his master into a corner. It was a feeling rather unbecoming of a butler, but strangely pleasing none the less.

The Demon King sighed, shutting his eyes. "It's going to be incredibly boring."

Gilbert rubbed his forehead wearily, beginning to run out of patience. "Then take your notes for your next plan to bully Vivi-dono. I do not care. If you delay any more, you are going to be late."

Lucifer's eyes snapped open, his mouth stretching in a wide upside-down grin as he looked up at his butler. "_Why_, Gilbert, that's a _wonderful_ idea… Grab me that book, won't you?" Despite the phrasing, it was clearly an order. His butler sighed and retrieved said 'book' from the king's desk, although it was thick enough to be a tome. _He's surely not intending to _actually_ take this to such a meeting, is he?… Who am I kidding? This _is_ Lucifer-sama, after all. _Gilbert could feel the familiar beginnings of a headache starting up in the recesses of his mind, telling him that it was time to just let things go. As long as the Demon King was actually _at_ the meeting, Gilbert's job was done.

Still, he couldn't help commenting dryly as he helped Lucifer put on his coat, "If you put as much effort into your duties as you did into bullying Vivi, I imagine the kingdom would be a lot more smoothly run, Lucifer-sama."

The Demon King pouted, a look of mock hurt passing across the sharp features. "Aw, Gilbert, that's no fun."

Gilbert sighed quietly. Why did he even bother?

=#=#=#=

A portly demon bowed low as Lucifer swept into the meeting room. While he accepted the greetings from the southern demon lords gathered there with a wave of his hand, Gilbert eyed the room and considered his options. Should he stay here for some indeterminable amount of time – completely dependant upon Lucifer's attention span, of course – or should he go and deal with the other numerous jobs that had been building up over the past week?

Neither option was really appealing, but in the end Gilbert decided that the paperwork was more demanding. He'd gotten tired of manoeuvring around the towering stacks of paper in the Demon King's study. As he helped Lucifer sit down, he gestured curtly to his second-in-command, Tomas. The young demon was freckly and blue-eyed, with short, brown curly hair, but was also such a quick study that Gilbert sometimes felt it safe to let Tomas watch over his difficult charge. Besides, the young demon had to get used to the king's many (and he did mean _many_) eccentricities at some point. This would be a good place to start.

"Stay here," he whispered when Tomas came over to him quietly and bowed his head to hear the silver-haired demon better. "Guard the king. Try not to get bored."

"Understood." Tomas hesitated, blue eyes holding a hint of confusion. "But where are you going, sir?"

"To do work." Gilbert's mouth twisted in resignation. He poured Lucifer a cup of tea, murmuring as he passed it over that he was leaving Lucifer in Tomas' care. There was something suspicious in the way the Demon King glanced over at Tomas, the hint of a devious grin playing on the edge of his lips, a mischievous glint in the grey eyes that made Gilbert frown. "Please behave, Lucifer-sama. This _is _an important meeting, after all."

"You worry too much, Gilbert. No wonder your hair is grey already," the king replied, that amused gleam growing stronger in his eyes. "Be gone, then." He made a little shooing motion with his hands.

There was nothing left to do but to bow to him and the rest of the demon lords, acknowledge Tomas with a nod and depart the room with a swish of his usual white robes. The two guards on duty outside the room saluted briefly, fist to heart, as he came into the hallway before taking up stances on either side of the heavy wooden doors.

A sigh escaped him as he headed down the hallway to his own appointment with Lucifer's study and all the paperwork and mess that the king had failed to deal with while having fun bullying Vivi. _I really do not see how it manages to pile up so much … and my hair is naturally this colour, in any case._

=#=#=#=

He had managed to deal with most of the papers in the king's study within a couple of hours and thought it was high time to take a break. The glasses he wore when reading did not shield his eyes from the effect of staring at tiny print for long periods of time, so it was with some relief when he found an empty room with a tiled floor that looked out onto a courtyard where he could sit and give his two swords a much needed polishing.

The silver-haired demon was in the middle of oiling one of his blades, having absently noted that the black nail polish on his fingers was chipped and would need repainting, when he suddenly felt the eerie sensation that he was being watched. Frowning, he glanced around the room: empty. His eyes ran over the big windows set high in the wall that allowed watery light from the opposite side to the courtyard to filter down into the room. One of the curtains was fluttering in the faint breeze. He frowned again; something still seemed wrong and he still felt as though he were being watched. He didn't have much time to dwell on the problem before his thoughts were interrupted by a loud, panic-stricken shout.

"Gilbert-sama! Gilbert-sama!"

The shout echoed down the hallway a second before Tomas burst into the room at a full-tilt run, skidding to a stop in front of his superior and bracing his hands on his knees, wheezing and coughing from running so hard.

"Tomas?" Gilbert asked in surprise, setting down his sword and cloth and getting up. "Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be guarding the king?""

"Izorrible thekinddunli dizapeeredanwecant findimaniwhere–" Tomas gasped out, bend double as he tried to get his breath back.

"Calm down and make your report properly; I can't understand a word you're saying," Gilbert said sternly, his usual unshakeable façade of calm hiding the thin note of worry beginning to rise within him. Although Tomas was an excellent guard and trained diligently, he still had yet to master how – much like Gilbert himself was doing now – to appear unaffected by any turn of events. Tomas' face was exceptionally easy to read, making him exceptionally bad at playing poker on the guards' poker night and making it exceptionally easy for Gilbert to read the situation now from the younger demon's look of visible distress. Still, if the king had been attacked, Tomas would not be here; he would be defending the king: that thought alone reassured Gilbert as he waited for the other demon to Tomas took several deep breaths and stood up straight, Gilbert was already picking up both of his swords and re-sheathing them to buckle at his waist.

"Sir," Tomas began, belatedly remembering his lessons and schooling his face to at least a semblance of calmness. "King Lucifer has disappeared."

"Disappeared?" Gilbert repeated, that thin note of worry beginning to strengthen into jangling alarm bells. "How so? Do you know where he might be?"

"No sir. None of the guards that were on duty nearby can find him. He disappeared from the meeting room about ten minutes ago. I was watching him with my own eyes, sir, and suddenly he just vanished into thin air!"

The alarm bells fell silent instantly. _That sounds like – _"Tomas, did Lucifer-sama leave anything behind? A book, for instance?"

The curly-haired demon hesitated, brows furrowing as he thought back over the scene, then shook his head. "No sir, there was nothing. One second the king was there and the next he wasn't. The entire meeting has been thrown into disarray."

"I bet it has," Gilbert said absently. _If he did not leave _that_ behind, it indicates…_ Tomas was still too worked up and too worried to see that his superior, on the other hand, was not worried at all. Well – not too worried, anyway: Lucifer being Lucifer was a constant source of worry in the first place.

"Should I go and inform the rest of the Guard?" the young demon said. "If Lucifer-sama has been kidnapped –"

That snapped Gilbert out of his thoughts. "He has not been kidnapped, Tomas; do not worry about that."

"But he's disappeared –"

"I do not doubt that." Gilbert sighed and raised his voice, addressing the place where he had sensed the watching eyes. "You can come out of there now, Lucifer-sama."

A small boy jumped out from behind the curtains, a swirl of black flame engulfing him as he sailed downwards. The tall, adult form of the Demon King landed lightly on the floor, heeled shoes clicking against the tiles. His grey eyes were amused as they surveyed his audience: a very shell-shocked Tomas and a decidedly _unamused_ Gilbert. "Shouldn't you have been more worried that I'd disappeared, Gilbert?" he asked, attempting and failing to look hurt. "What if I _had_ been kidnapped?"

_Then I would pity the ones who took you and expect them to bring you back within a few hours for being too troublesome_, the butler thought with a sigh, raising an invisible eyebrow at his master. "Should you not be taking your meetings more seriously than to run away from them?" he asked, voice and expression deadpan.

"I wasn't 'running away'," Lucifer told him, heading over to a seat nearby to lounge on. "I'm merely taking a break."

"I see." Gilbert turned to Tomas, who was still somewhat confused from seeing someone who had mysteriously vanished suddenly popping up in front of him. "As I said, there is no need to worry. Lucifer-sama has been found and is safe."

Tomas started, suddenly drawn back to reality and gave a small breath of relief. "As expected of Gilbert-sama!" he said, impressed.

Ignoring the compliment – if you could call it that – Gilbert gave Tomas his orders. "Tell the guards to stop searching now that the king has been found. They are to return to their normal posts." _That way, it shows that everything is normal. Plus, I doubt today's meeting will be continued at all, so there is no need for them to guard an empty room._ "Go back to the meeting room and let our guests know that everything is under control and they are not to worry." He paused. "And please inform them that unfortunately, Lucifer-sama is feeling a bit ill and will probably not be able to return to the meeting today. Please give our apologies on the matter and tell them that I shall contact them later to reschedule the meeting for a convenient date."

"Yes, sir." Tomas bowed, giving the same fist-to-heart salute and turned away, leaving the room at a more sedate pace than that with which he had entered.

Gilbert nodded once; Tomas would see to it that this did not escalate into a situation of panic and deal with everyone else, leaving the silver-haired demon to deal with only his difficult charge, who was now sitting back comfortably on his seat and watching the exchange with glittering amusement. The butler sighed and made his way over to the king, unbuckling the swords from his belt as he did so. There was no more need for them at the moment and Gilbert didn't want anything sharp to hand should his exasperation increase any further. It would not be wise to try and stab his king from sheer frustration.

"Why, Gilbert, you look mad at me," Lucifer said mockingly, steepling his fingers and resting them atop his knee.

The silver-haired demon wisely did not respond to that statement, instead saying with a trace of sarcasm, "Next time you wish to leave a meeting early, please do so by more conventional means. You do not need to create needless bother for those assigned to your protection."

"Tsk, tsk. I was only stepping out for a moment."

"Then will you kindly return to your meeting so that the treaty with your southern lords can be completed?" Gilbert asked drily. "It is not only the guards you are inconveniencing."

"But you've already instructed your underling to tell them I'm sick," Lucifer retorted. "Obviously, I can't attend any kind of meeting today… or even tomorrow, perhaps…" He trailed off, looking thoughtful.

When the Demon King showed no sign of continuing the pointless argument – Lucifer would do what he wanted, as always – Gilbert gave up and began putting away the knives he had been sharpening and cleaning along with said cleaning instruments. It seemed his free time was over and that he would be attending Lucifer once again. _At least I managed to get _some_ things done in the meantime_, the pale-haired demon thought to himself, buckling the swords once more to the belt inside his coat. _What is Lucifer-sama thinking, in any case? Surely he must have some reason other than a mere whim for skipping out on an important meeting like that._ However, this _was_ the same Demon King who had decided on the spur of the moment to marry a human girl – a _young_ human girl – and make her his Queen merely to annoy his favourite relative for amusement.

_Then again, perhaps there is no reason other than a whim._

A sound of rustling paper caught the butler's attention. He turned, only to find Lucifer had pulled out a sheaf of papers and was studying them intently, tapping the end of his feathered pen against his lip absently as he read. This was certainly a strange development. _Why did he go to all that trouble to avoid a meeting only to do more paperwork?_ Gilbert wondered. _Especially considering he had piles of it in his study this morning that he was clearly ignoring…_ He continued to clean up, watching Lucifer out of the corner of one eye as the Demon King wrote something, crossed it out and then scribbled something else. All perfectly normal actions in doing paperwork – except that the smirk twisting the edges of Lucifer's lips made his butler wonder if it was official paperwork at all.

"Lucifer-sama," he said eventually, suspicion tinging his words, "What are you doing?"

Grey eyes looked up, a spark of surprise at being interrupted giving way to that mischievous glint that always spelt trouble. Lucifer's grin spread, making the stars beneath his eye crinkle with laugh lines. "Updating my 'Bullying Vivi Manual', of course."

"Updating your 'Bullying Vivi Manual'?" Gilbert repeated, wondering why he even bothered to feel surprised at the answer. _Of course it is. Why didn't I see that one coming?_ "Why? You only gave a copy to Moritz-dono a few days ago. You can be rest assured that he will carry out your orders diligently," he added dryly. _Almost too diligently._ Judging by the way the high-level demon took all of his orders literally, Gilbert wondered if he'd be forced to intervene in his king's little 'game' at some point in the future. He sighed. Why was it that every time the Demon King decided to make things difficult for Vivi, it made things difficult for his butler-guard as well?

"Ah, but I already thought of a few things to add to it," the king explained. "For my next project, you see."

He felt tired. _Why must he waste his time on such trivial things when the entire Demon World is awaiting his orders and there is other work to be done?_ "Lucifer-sama, I do not think it is prudent or necessary to be indulging in such –"

Lucifer raised a hand, cutting his butler off and gesturing him to come over. Gilbert did as instructed but was determined to finish his lecture. "Lucifer-sama –"

The Demon King looked up at the silver-haired demon, grinned evilly and stretched out the hand holding the pen. Before Gilbert could even blink, the dark-haired demon had drawn something across his butler's forehead in ink and leaned back to admire his handiwork.

"…What are you doing?" Gilbert asked patiently, reaching up to touch his forehead as though doing so would give him the answer he sought. His fingers came away ink-free, which either meant the ink was extremely fast-drying or else there was no ink on the pen. Gilbert seriously hoped it was the latter.

"Improving your appearance," Lucifer said, going back to his papers.

Gilbert stared at the king for a few seconds, trying to work _that_ one out. _Ink on my face improves my appearance…?_ _That makes no sense!_ He gave up and searched for something vaguely reflective enough to act as a mirror. A nearby axe on display worked well enough, allowing the butler to see what the Demon King had done to his face. A thin black line above each eye: he had given his servant eyebrows.

A twitch developed at the corner of Gilbert's eye.

"Oh, by the way," Lucifer added casually, apparently not noticing his butler's emotional state, "I've decided that, since I am feeling unwell today I shall accompany you on your rounds in case I should suddenly need your assistance." He finished writing something with a flourish and stoppered the inkwell he had with him. Gilbert could only stare at his king, speechless, wondering why the gods were so intent on making his life difficult today.

"Lucifer-sama … Are you trying to start a 'Bullying Gilbert Manual' as well?"

The Demon King laughed, standing up and brushing off invisible dust. "My dear Gilbert, while that is an amusing idea, I'm afraid that playing with my cute little relative is so much more fun."

Gilbert rubbed his temples, feeling the morning's warning of a headache coming back at full-force. _This is going to be an incredibly long day…_ "If you have the time to be accompanying me, then I suggest you go and deal with all of the work that is waiting for you."

"What good would that do if I'm taking a break?" the dark-haired demon replied, strolling past his butler to the door. "It's alright to escape once in a while, isn't it? Too much work ruins your health!"

"That would likely be a valid point, Lucifer-sama … if you actually _did_ any work," the butler-guard grumbled, following the other demon out the door.

=#=#=#=

True to his word, the Demon King did indeed follow Gilbert around for the rest of the day, the butler instructed to 'go about whatever business you would have been doing while I was stuck in that meeting.' He followed the silver-haired demon as he checked on the arrangements for the knighting ceremony that was to be held next week; followed him into the depths of the castle's kitchens in his child form, accepting a snack from the cooks as Gilbert conferred with the head cook over what was to be served for lunch and dinner. He had followed Gilbert to the king's study, where the silver-haired demon had pointed to the cushion-covered chair and given the king several documents only he could sign and seal 'since you insist on being here' while the butler cleared up the rest of the mess he had been unable to deal with that morning.

Thus the day passed in this manner until Gilbert found himself in the practice room sometime after lunch, watching a spontaneous sword bout between Lucifer and Tomas. Technically, this was the time that Gilbert devoted to training his second-in-command, but the Demon King had by that time grown a little bored and instead challenged his butler to a duel with swords. It had ended in a tie, from which the king had then immediately challenged Tomas. The curly-haired demon had hesitated, glancing at Gilbert, who had nodded for Tomas to accept. It would do his second-in-command good to fight against demons with differing fighting styles, not to mention that Tomas could already win most bouts against those who took the time to duel him. He needed something new.

After an intense battle of blades clashing in a continuous dance, Lucifer managed to disarm Tomas and send the younger demon's sword flying. Gilbert ruled the match over with the king's win; Tomas bowed to both his king and his superior. "Thank you for the match, your Majesty."

"Not bad," the Demon King told him, handing his sword over to Gilbert to hold. "Keep trying your best." Tomas bowed again and went to retrieve his sword. Lucifer sat down on one of the benches around the edge of the room and gestured to Gilbert. "You can start your lesson now."

Gilbert bowed as well, putting away the steel blades that they had been using. Today's training was with daggers and unarmed fighting; they would not need swords. Tomas had already set aside his sword belt and had started on his target practice. His aim was good; nearly three quarters of the knives he threw hit the black circle at the centre, or clustered very tightly around it. Next they moved to unarmed combat, where it seemed that Tomas was distracted. After the third hit to the face that the younger demon should have avoided, Gilbert called a halt to the fight and demanded to know what was going on.

"It's just – ah – you – you have eyebrows?" Tomas replied, the end of his statement rising into a question. Gilbert sighed and rubbed his temples again. One of the first things he had done had been to try and remove the graffiti on his face, but unfortunately the ink had been indelible to the point where Gilbert had only succeeded in making the marks slightly paler. If Tomas' reaction was anything to go by, it certainly explained the odd looks Gilbert had been getting all morning.

The silver-haired butler vowed then and there that he would figure out some way to get revenge on his master.

"Never mind them," Gilbert told Tomas sternly, aware of how ridiculous he felt. "If you let such a simple thing distract you, then you obviously are not ready to guard anyone, let alone the king."

Tomas snapped to attention, saluting Gilbert. "Yes sir! I'm sorry." Having apparently decided that this was an (admittedly strange) test devised by his superior, the young demon settled into the fight and managed not to make any further mistakes.

"Very well," Gilbert said when they had finished. "It is time I taught you my best and most useful technique for disabling your enemy with minimum time required." He had Tomas' attention now, the brunette watching intently as Gilbert demonstrated the simple hand chop to the back of the neck of a practice dummy. "It is also an effective attack and requires skill, precision and strength. Now, your turn."

He watched Tomas attempt the exercise with a critical eye, correcting him several times. In his concentration, he hadn't noticed that the other demon in the room had got up and wandered over for a closer look.

"Gilbert!" Lucifer called, watching Tomas strike the dummy yet again with interest. "Teach me this technique. It can be my new greeting for Vivi!"

Aware of the various and often harmful greetings Lucifer had devised over the decades for his younger relative, Gilbert shook his head. "This is a serious technique for your protection, Lucifer-sama, not something to be used in play…" He trailed off, noting with exasperation that the Demon King was clearly not listening as he attempted to copy Tomas' actions. "_Lucifer-sama_," he repeated sternly and the dark-haired demon looked up at him.

"So, how do I do this Gilbert Chop?" the king asked, rolling up his sleeves and seemingly completely oblivious (though on further reflection, the Demon King was very, very good at ignoring things he didn't want to hear) to Gilbert's admonishments. His words threw the silver-haired demon for a loop, leaving him with his mouth opened to deliver a remonstration that would never come and a bewildered look he feared was becoming permanent.

"… 'Gilbert Chop'?" the butler-guard eventually repeated, raising an inked-in eyebrow. _What kind of a name is that?_

"Well, the name suits it, don't you think?" Lucifer replied, shrugging. Gilbert blinked a few times and just decided it was better not to ask questions sometimes. _Hopefully, the name will not stick._

Unfortunately, as is the way of such things, Tomas mentioned the impromptu technique-naming to some of his friends in the Guard and it had caught on like a fire in a barn of dried hay. Gilbert couldn't escape hearing the absurd name whenever he was practising in the days that followed, leading him to renew his earlier vow of revenge on the Demon King.

=#=#=#=

Lucifer sat back in the bath with a sigh, the hot water soaking away the tiredness that had lately begun to sink into his very bones. As the Demon King relaxed, Gilbert set about picking up the clothes that lay discarded on the floor. Somehow, the day had passed without further personal mishaps; however, in the late afternoon there came a report about holes opening up in the ground in the northern part of the castle. Dropping his lazy attitude, Lucifer had gone off to investigate the source of the report along with his loyal guard, proving once again that the king really only messed around when nothing serious was at stake and he had the time to do so.

It had taken a while for Lucifer to get rid of them, mainly because he was intent on studying them first. They were strange holes, resembling quite closely the kind of portal the king had once opened to send Vivi and Felten back to the human world. Demons with fairly weak powers were being pulled into the sinkholes, to be thrown out who knew where. Were they some kind of prank gone wrong? Gilbert had quietly questioned his king about it as the area was blocked off, but Lucifer had just shaken his head mutely, unusually sombre. The dark eyes were troubled as the black-haired demon finally dealt with the sinkholes and retired back to his rooms.

The Demon King finished washing and gestured for Gilbert to come and wash his back. As the silver-haired demon obeyed, Lucifer propped his arm up on the edge of the bathtub and rested his head on his hand. "I hear there are more of those sinkholes turning up all over the place."

"Yes, there are," Gilbert replied. "Not just in the castle, either. A message came from Viscount Xaver-dono's hold in the north; they've reported seeing the same kind of events for the past fortnight or so."

"Xaver, hm… and of course, he only chooses to report it now." Lucifer sighed. He remained silent as Gilbert proceeded to wash his hair clean and only said, "I'm getting out now," when he was done. As he helped his master into a bathrobe, the impassive butler finally dared to ask the question that had been bothering him all afternoon.

"Lucifer-sama…"

"Yes, Gilbert?"

"Do you know why this might be happening?" Gilbert didn't need to explain what he meant, any more than Lucifer needed to say, _'Yes, I know,_' when his expression said it all for him. The Demon King looked across to his reflection in the mirror, his hand brushing away a few drops of water from his soaking fringe that had landed on the stars beneath his eye.

"Let's just say I have a fair idea," was all he replied, tying the robe in place.

Gilbert paused. Then –

"You should probably take care of the problem soon then."

The corner of the king's mouth curved up in a smile. "All in good time, Gilbert. All in good time." He left the bathroom for the comfort of his bedroom, settling down on the edge of his bed as his butler went to collect a nightshirt from the chest of drawers. "I suppose I should make a decision soon, though," he said thoughtfully.

"You've already made your decision, haven't you?" Gilbert accused shrewdly, returning with the clothing he had gone off to find. "It's been made for a long time."

"Hmm, maybe," Lucifer said enigmatically, that familiar twinkle returning to his eye. "But before I can do that, there is something else I have to do…" He paused, then nodded once to himself and looked up at Gilbert. "I think I'll hold a tea party for the high-ranking nobles. Make the arrangements for me, will you Gilbert? There's one _special_ guest I'd like to invite along too…"

"A tea party?" Gilbert repeated. "Very well, I'll see to it." The demon paused. "By the way, your meeting today was rescheduled for tomorrow. Please at least _try_ to attend the entire meeting this time around. Everyone is very much concerned for your health, though doubtless your recovery in a day shall amaze them…"

"I don't doubt it." Lucifer's voice was muffled as he crawled under the covers. "Goodnight, Gilbert."

"Goodnight, Lucifer-sama."

As Gilbert shut the door to the king's bedroom and took up his position as guard outside – it would be a few hours yet before the relief guard came to change shifts – he shook his head.

_A tea party. Just what is he planning now? This isn't the time to be indulging in games…_

But then, the games the Demon King invented always turned out to have an ulterior motive, some higher purpose that always served the king's interests. Gilbert was fairly sure he knew the identity of Lucifer's 'special guest' as well, and he could not shake the quiet feeling of foreboding.

In the end, though, Lucifer would do what he wanted to do and nothing else; playing an elaborate game where only he knew the rules and the prize at the end. He supposed it must become boring for Lucifer sometimes, after reigning for centuries in the same way. Dealing with the same kind of requests, the same kind of problems and the same pettiness that made up much of the court, over and over and over again: Gilbert could almost see why the Demon King chose to act on his whims rather than just bearing with the monotony; why he created chaos and let it fall out as it pleased.

Almost. _If only his whims did not cause such inconvenience for myself as well._

But then, did they not do the same for Gilbert as they did the Demon King himself? The silver-haired butler was always too concerned with his job and keeping the king out of trouble (or making sure that his schemes worked out, which invariably led to _more_ trouble) to dwell on the fact that with any other king, his life would have been so much more boring, so much more monotonous than it was now. As the Demon King's butler and guard, Gilbert's duties would never change, but at least with Lucifer two days were never the same.

Gilbert was still trying to decide if that was a good thing.

=#= The End =#=

* * *

A/N: ...and thus ends a day in the life of Gilbert. Poor guy xD;;

I really hope the Demon King doesn't shirk his work as often as this, otherwise I really *do* have no idea how the Demon World continues to be run xD;; Luckily the actual Lucifer seems a bit more responsible, haha.

Thanks for reading! (^o^)/


End file.
